Police
will be able to store and search data
captured by the proposed national automatic
number plate recognition (ANPR) camera
network for at least two years, the
government has revealed.
The government announced plans last year
to develop a national network of thousands
of cameras that will automatically scan car
number plates and check them against police
databases. Police forces will keep that data
in a live, searchable system for two years,
according to the Association of Chief Police
Officers (ACPO).
The ACPO guidance states: "This period
of retention is to facilitate the searching
of that data on a case-by-case basis, should
a crime committed during the deployment come
to light during that two-year period. In
exceptional circumstances there may be
operational grounds to justify retention of
ANPR data beyond the two-year period."
Home Office minister Paul Goggins said
the Acpo guidance complies with all the
relevant data-protection legislation.
He told MPs this week: "This document
covers the European Convention for Human
Rights. Data Protection, the Regulatory
Investigative Powers Act 2000 and the
Freedom of Information Act 2000 relating to
the police use of ANPR (excluding speed
enforcement devices) and is applicable to
all police forces in England and Wales."
A £15m pilot of the technology is
currently underway although the Driver and
Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) has been
criticised in the past for providing the
police with large numbers of incorrect
records and data.
The new strategy lays out plans for a
national network of ANPR-enabled cameras and
a national centre to analyse the
intelligence collected, and police claim it
will help them drive criminals off the
roads.
